What Happens to Inheritances in Divorce?
Property division in a California divorce might feel like a nerve-wracking prospect. Whether your marriage lasted decades or a mere matter of months, you have built something that you are now called upon to disassemble. How that life, and that accumulated property, is disassembled will depend on a number of factors, including state laws and whether items such as a prenuptial agreement are in place.
While many people are more or less understanding of the fact that the “community property” of the marriage should be divided, no one wants to part with something that they feel is solely their own property. An inheritance from a departed loved one, for example, feels personal. It feels like it should not be subject to division.
But what does the California court system say?
This article is aimed to help people begin to understand the general outline of how inheritances are normally viewed in the course of a California divorce. Understanding property division and inheritance under California law can be critical to ensuring that those going through a divorce set their expectations and take appropriate action now to protect their interests. For general information, read on, and to receive formal, strategic advice tailored to your own unique circumstances, contact an experienced divorce attorney at the law firm of Bradley S. Sandler.
Community and Separate Property
California law presumes that property acquired during marriage is communal, or “community” property. Since both adults are an equal part making up the “community” of marriage, each member of the marriage is given equal rights to their equal share of the community property. (There are, of course, important caveats to this general standard, including valid prenuptial agreement terms.)
Separate property, unlike community property, is considered to be “separate” from community property. This means that items with separate property status are not subject to the same equitable division as community property in the case of divorce.
Separate property is generally considered to be assets that were acquired before the start of the marriage, as well as gifts and inheritances received by either spouse during the course of the marriage.
What IS an Inheritance?
Gifts from a deceased relative will generally be seen by the court as being an inheritance and, ergo, separate property. However, if an inheritance becomes sufficiently enmeshed/comingled with community property, it can lose its separate property status. It is important for inheritance recipients to take proper care of the inheritance to ensure it maintains its separate property status.
Comingled Property
In some cases, an asset with separate property status, such as an inheritance, can intermingle with community property to the point that it becomes difficult/impossible to determine what is separate and what is communal. When this absence of separation occurs, the “separate” nature of the inheritance can be lost. In those instances, that asset will be counted among the community property and is subject to equal division in divorce.
For example, if inheritance money is put into a joint checking account and used to pay bills, the funds could become inextricably commingled with the money from both spouses’ salaries, which are community property and deposited into the same account.
The changeable nature of an inheritance’s separate property status highlights the importance of handling these assets properly. An experienced divorce attorney can help.
Protecting Your Inheritance: Contact the Law Office of Bradley S. Sandler
Understanding inheritances and property division in California could save you from enduring unnecessary stress and taking steps that do not benefit you. With sound legal counsel in your corner, you can ensure that you understand the proper steps you need to take to place yourself in the strongest position possible. Contact an experienced divorce attorney with the Law Office of Bradley S. Sandler today.
Sources
https://www.eonline.com/news/1415865/bill-gates-how-much-money-kids-will-get-in-inheritance